Washington, July 14: The first full-time female FBI agent stationed at the US prison in Guantanamo, Bay, Cuba says she witnessed a drunken “spring break” atmosphere during her tenure — and has photographs to prove it.
In a little noticed complaint Friday, the 43-year-old agent, Theresa Foley, alleges that she experienced a “generally sexist, discriminatory and ‘boys club’ atmosphere” during her time at Camp Delta in Cuba and that she contracted a permanent debilitating disease as a result of being forced to sleep in rat-infested quarters. Foley is suing the Justice Department over her illness and purported sexual harassment.
Her illness has led to a hysterectomy and spinal collapse.
Other FBI agents, she says, ostracized her because she refused to participate in the alleged carousing. She claims to have attended parties with other FBI agents in which they wore a “mocking imitation of Arab or Afghan attire” and has pictures of “personnel at Guantanamo engaged in drunken carousing in a sexually charged atmosphere, day and night,” including shots of “female employees in bathing suits or revealing attire sitting on the laps of male employees, and female employees being hugged, kissed and likely groped by male employees.”
Foley claims she was dubbed a lesbian by male FBI agents and told, among other things, that her “nipples were leaking.”
“Other photographs reveal, among other things, what appear to be intoxicated FBI employees wearing some type of mocking imitation of Arab or Afghan attire, and personnel at a Halloween party dressed in orange detainee jumpsuits (apparently as a joke),” Foley writes. “Still other employees appear to be completely intoxicated and engaged in various activities which indicate both a pervasive discriminatory atmosphere toward women, as well as behavior inappropriate for employees stationed at a detention facility for terrorists. Some of the behavior resembles stereotypical ’spring break’ behavior. This highly inappropriate behavior by FBI personnel and other U.S. Government personnel working at Guantanamo, was known by the FBI, was encouraged by the FBI, and was tolerated by the FBI.”
“This pervasive sexually discriminatory and harassing atmosphere was at such an extreme, that it is accurate to describe the prevalent atmosphere as an ‘animal house’ atmosphere,” Foley continues. “When FBI agents were not busy interrogating terrorists held at Guantanamo, they were expected and encouraged by their managers and supervisors to be sun bathing, snorkeling, fishing, drinking, carousing and engaging in romantic relationships with each other. Over the course of her stay at Guantanamo, once it became clear that SA Foley did not believe this conduct was appropriate for an FBI Special Agent, and refused to engage in this conduct, SA Foley was ostracized and maligned.”
Animal House, a 1978 comedy depicting the opprobrium of a college frathouse, has become all-but-synonymous with puerile college drinking fetes.
–Agencies